Staff 'heartbroken' over the death of a 24 year old in Rochester group home

December 08, 2017 11:04 AM

Rochester police are trying to find out why a 24-year-old man died inside his group home in the city Wednesday night.

His name was Luis Minllety. He was a student at Mary Cariola Children's Center for 11 years and the staff there told us they are "heartbroken."

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The group home is on Avenue A near North Clinton Avenue. The home is set in off the street. Wednesday night at 5:30, Rochester police got called to the home. Police say by the time they got there, Minllety was dead.

Here is the statement from Mary Cariola Children Center:

"The staff of Mary Cariola Children's Center awoke to the heartbreaking news that a beloved former student and 2014 graduate of ours had died. Luis Minllety who spent nearly 11 years in our school program passed away last night. The news of his death came as an extreme shock to all who worked with him and continued to track his progress. We know the time that Luis spent here was valued and rewarding for our staff whether working with him in the classroom or seeing his smile as he walked down the hall."

The group home is run by the Ibero American Action League. Ibero would not talk to us on camera but gave us this statement:

“It continues to be a very difficult time for staff as we try to come to terms with the death of Luis Minllety. Luis came to Ibero when he was 13-years-old and was considered family. As an agency that places a strong focus on creating a supportive and nurturing environment for everyone, this is a personal loss for us. We are providing grief counselors at this time while continuing to cooperate fully with investigators.”

People leaving the group home didn't have much to say.

"And then we would appreciate if you would just let the house be," one staffer said from her car as she drove away.

The group home is for people with development disabilities so it's regulated by New York State. News10NBC found the home's performance review by the state Office of People with Developmental Disabilities. The review says the Ibero group home gets five out of five stars.

Minllety is the second person whose death inside a group home started a police investigation in Monroe County this year.

In June, Heather Roselli died inside a group home in Webster. Her family says she stopped breathing after staff took her to the ground to restrain her. Two employees of that group home are charged with manslaughter.

The Monroe County Medical Examiner's Office is charged with figuring out how and why Luis Minllety died.